Arch delux

Perfect brows make a dramatic change.

Fluttering over the throngs of shoppers on Fifth Avenue, sandwiched between Tiffany’s & Co.and the entrance to Trump Tower, a filmy banner reads (in big block letters) “All Hail the Queen of Brows.” Beneath the sign is a picture of Eliza Petrescu, the Audrey Hepburn-ish perfecter of some of the most beautiful brows in the business: Natasha Richardson, Ingrid Casares, Jennifer Grey, and Yasmeen Ghauri. Petrescu’s appointment book at her new, minimalist chic spa at Manhattan’s Avon Centre Spa, Salon and Store is booked—booked—until 2011, despite the fact that an average appointment takes under ten minutes. “What can I say?” she says, laughing. “Great brows can do so much for your face—it’s worth it.”

Further downtown, a steady stream of celebrities like Liv Tyler, Shalom Harlow, Gisele Bundchen and Naomi Campbell traipse to the sunlight-drenched, antique-furnished Park Avenue apartment of eyebrow guru Paulo Siqueira. Siqueira is as passionate as Petrescu about shaping the perfect brow: “People underestimate the impact brows have,” explains Siqueira. “It’s practically a mini-facelift: You can lift the eyes, open up the center of the face, make a round face more oval, and bring the whole face into sharper focus.”

Both Siqueira and Soli Nichiyo Davis, an aesthetician at Soho’s frenetically busy Helena Rubenstein Beauty Gallery, are against waxing. “If I had a dollar each time I fixed brows mistakenly shaped by wax, I’d be a millionaire!” claims Siqueira. “The skin around the eyes is far too delicate, especially if you’re using creams like Retin A. Waxing can cause peeling, and do untold damage.” Davis agrees: “Waxing weakens the muscles around the eyes. It can also cause pigmentation on women of color.”

Tweezerman Granite Stainless Slant Tweezer

Petrescu defends her famous technique. “There’s much less pain with waxing, and you end up taking less off. Wax takes off the fuzz only around the edges of the brow, so the fullness in the main part of the brow remains. With tweezers, people tend to pluck the hairs within the brow itself, so it ends up thinner and stragglier.”

Either technique can be augmented with another miraculous face-revitalizing treatment: Botox injections. “Botox elevates the natural arch of the brow without the pulled look of plastic surgery,” says Dr. Fredric Brandt, the bi-coastal celebrity dermatologist who jets between New York and Miami. “The difference can be astonishing.”

“It’s almost impossible to create a proper perspective using your own eyes,” says Beverly Hills-based brow expert Anastasia Soare, whose Hollywood clients include Jennifer Lopez, Cameron Diaz, Helen Hunt and Julianna Margulies. “Have them sculpted professionally first, then you can maintain the shape at home.”

Davis agrees: “Your brow should perfect your facial symmetry. There’s no such a thing as one single, cookie-cutter brow shape. Everyone’s face is different.”

A professional will consult at length with each client before shaping. “Some women prefer sophisticated, clean brows, while others like them more natural,” says Siqueira.

Davis finds out whether her clients wear a lot of makeup. “Brows above eyes with makeup are completely different than brows above eyes without makeup,” she says. ” With full eye makeup, defined brows are simply an additional touch, but with women who just wear a slick of mascara and lipstick, the brow defines the whole eye. You need a more natural, softer brow if you don’t wear makeup.”

“Brows should be made up of three elements,” says Siqueira. “An ascending angle, an arch, and a descending angle. Subtle adjustments in these angles will change the shape of your face dramatically.”

ONE
Where should the arch be? Look directly into a mirror and hold a pencil vertically in front of your eye, just at the outer edge of your iris. The point at which the pencil crosses the brow is where the highest part of the arch should be.

TWO
Where should the brows start? The space between your brows should be equal to the width of your eye. Hold a pencil vertically at the side of your nostril. The inner edge of the brow should start above the nostril.

THREE
Where should the brow end? Hold a pencil diagonally against your nostril, and extend it to the outer corner of your eye. This is where the brow should end.

Always start with the left eye, says Siqueira, who believes the left side is less sensitive than the right. “I put ice cubes on the brows to numb the skin. If you moisturize first, the brows will be easier to pluck.” Anastasia dots brows with her Pre Tweeze Gel, a lightweight gel with aloe vera, chaomile and peppermint oil to prepare the skin for twee zing.

• Smooth brows upwards with a brush.
• Hold tweezers in the middle. Hold skin with opposite hand and gently stretch.
• Place tweezers at an angle as close to the skin as possible, near the roots of the hair.
• Pluck hair (quickly!) in the direction of hair growth to avoid breaking the follicle.
• Continually rotate plucking between eyes to ensure symmetry. (You’ll avoid over plucking one eye and then having to even it out.)
• Pluck stray hairs one at a time, working all across the brow.
• Holding tweezers straight and, pulling skin up towards the forehead, pluck any stray hairs from between brows.

“Slanted tweezers are the safest and easiest to use,” says Siqueira. “Pointed ones are ideal for the really short hairs, and give a very precise, clean line. Start the clean up with slanted tweezers, and then use pointed ones for a neater finish.”

Paulo Siqueira’s diamond-coated, stainless steel tweezers have grainier tips for an incredibly secure grip. For the ultimate in luxury, Tweezerman’s Deluxe 18K Gold Plated Slant Tweezer has a hand-filed, stainless tip for even the finest hairs.

Tweezerman’s Eyecare kit has a brow mousse to shape and set the brows, stainless steel slanted tweezers, and includes eyelash curlers with a pad that can be warmed with a blow dryer to give a longer-lasting curl, and a folding lash comb. Eliza Petrescu’s Eyebrow Essentials Kit contains everything for brows from scissors for trimming to Avon Hydrofirming Eye Treatment Samples, an super-light cream to soothe the brow area after plucking.

Brow Queen Pencil from Valerie of Beverly Hills

Shadows and pencils perfect the brow and even out any spaces. “Don’t go for too dark a color,” says Davis. “Match the color of the brow to the color of your hair. When in doubt, use taupe—it suits practically everyone,” says Siqueira. Petrescu advises blondes or light brunettes to stick with warmer, yellow-based browns. People with darker hair look good in cooler, blue-based browns. “And never use black!” she says.

Shadows and creams: • Brow Shadow from Face Stockholm in Bjork and Suede are perfect yellow-based brown powders. • Stroke them on with Laura Mercier’s angled natural-hair eyebrow brush. • Elizabeth Arden sleek compact of Dual Perfection Brow Shaper and Eye Liner in Fawn 02 has a creamy, smooth gliding formula in a warm, rich brown shade.

Anastasia Brow Pomade is a sheer alternative to brow powder that goes one like a cream yet leaves a powder finish.

Pencils:
• Versace’s Eyebrow pencil in Blonde is the ultimate, soft blonde shade • L’Oreal’s brow colorist pencil ingeniously combines a brush and highlighter powder with a sponge smudger at one end • The YSL eyebrow pencil in 3 • Helena Rubenstein’s Eyebrow Pencil in Beige 02 are ideal shades for light brunettes • For brunettes, Shu Uemura’s Eyebrow Pencil in Dark Brown • The Brow Queen Pencil from Valerie of Beverly Hills in Dark Brown are soft yet precise.

Contouring and coloring the shape:
Petrescu recommends first brushing eyebrows up (to make sure they’re even) and then down again. Next, using the brow pencil, draw a straight line for 3/4 of the brow to the highest part of the arch. The last 1/4 of the brow should contour slightly downwards towards the temple. Siqueira prefers to fill in the center of the brow first (as this is the part that should appear the darkest), then uses a brow brush to smudge the color outwards in both directions.

Use brow gel to set the shape. “Don’t use color or powder after applying the gel,” advises Petrescu. “It makes the brows messy.”

The Eyebrow Sealer Gel with Color from Paolo Siqueiria comes in six shades to suit every brow ranging from clear to dark brown, and Face Stockholm’s wildly-popular tinted Brow Fix literally walks out of the stores. •

Bloom’s Brown Eyebrow Essentials comes with tweezers, clear brow gel, and a soft, smooth-gliding mid-brown brow pencil.